Truck service bodies typically include one or more storage compartments for storing tools and equipment. A hinge mounted door is typically affixed to each such storage compartment so as to allow a user to gain access to the interior of the compartment, and to protect the contents of the compartment from exterior elements. In the past, manual padlock systems have been employed to secure the contents of such storage compartments against theft. These padlock systems include a rod assembly which is slidably arranged to pass through a bracket affixed to the interior of a compartment door. The bracket includes a hole or an opening that is adapted to receive the rod assembly when the system is in its locked state. The rod assembly extends through the outer surface of the service body where it includes a handle for manually moving the rod assembly between its locked and unlocked states. To prevent theft, the exterior handle may be secured to the outer surface of the truck body by a padlock.
Contractors and others that use service bodies to store tools and equipment often return to their vehicles with tools or other items in their hands. Upon their return to the vehicle, the storage compartments will typically be secured in their locked state. In order to gain access to the interior of these storage compartments, the padlock must be manually unlocked and, once freed from the padlock, the exterior handle must be manually moved to its unlocked position. Since the hands of vehicle users may typically be occupied with tools and the like, it is often inconvenient for such users to manually open their storage compartments upon returning to their vehicles.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a system that allows a vehicle user to lock and unlock storage compartments that have been secured by padlocking, without requiring the user to manually manipulate the padlock arrangement.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a system that allows a vehicle user to lock and unlock storage compartments that have been secured by padlocking from a remote location that is not directly adjacent to the vehicle.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a system that gives a vehicle user wireless remote access to storage compartments while, at the same time, allowing the user the option to access such storage compartments by manually manipulating a padlock system.
These and other objects of the invention will be better appreciated after reading the succeeding description of the invention in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.